No Longer What We Used To Be
by Fading Echoes 23
Summary: Normal lives of Flora, Audrey, Finn and Poppy get turned upside down when they get kidnapped. And the penguins came just a little too late this time. ( Poppy is on the cover)
1. Flora

Flora's POV

Vermont

12:00 pm

I held a kitten in my arms as I pulled out her bowl of milk. Mother left a while ago and left a note to feed the kitten. I'm surprised she trusts me, a ten year old, to take care of the house for several hours. Well it's not like she has a choice. She is a waitress who works on weekdays so it's always a bit lonely. I think that's why she got the cat in the first place.

I placed both the kitten and the bowl down. She meowed in thanks. I chuckled at her high pitched meow and she licked up her drink. I changed into my set of clothes which are a old, purple shirt, faded jeans and a pair of black sneakers before grabbing the kitten's leash.  
By now she finished drinking and had her eye on the new, red leash. Her orange ears perked up and she dashed on over to me.

"Come on Molly." I said before hocking the leash to her collar. I opened the slider and we stepped outside. It was around mid July now and the weather was hot enough. The sun blazed down like an oven and an occasional breeze came down onto us. Even if this is Vermont, it can get hot. Molly sniffed around inside the small yard before yanking me to go onto the sidewalk.

" Sorry girl, can't go on the street when mother's not here." I told her even though she probably didn't understand a word I said. But Molly insisted on going onto the paved sidewalk. I looked around. Who was their to stop me? I shrugged before we both went onto the sidewalk. The road was never busy except a few cars going by now or then. Once one car past, we already walked by two blocks. Then, Molly hissed at something as we were past the third house. I jerked over into her direction and moved the grass around. Inside was a little piece of metal that could fit in your hand. It took me a few moments to realize it was quietly beeping.

" What the heck?" I said before looking more closely at it. There was a little red light and a button right next to it. Curiosity took the best of me and I pressed the little button. Immediately, the screen flashed and a map came up. A dot appeared on the screen and I zoomed in on it. It showed River Street, the street I was currently on. What scared me is when I hit the dot.

My name showed up. Flora Silver was a link, so I horrifically hit it. Everything came up. Flora Marie Silver was at the top. Then it said under it that I was ten years old. A picture of me with Molly in my lap was in the top corner. They could tell that my hair was reddish brown and even my eye color shown. Mother was in there too. It had her work schedule and a small piece of information about her but not as long as mine.  
Even Molly, the kitten we got a few weeks ago was their. Her picture, name and breed were written down. I dropped the Human Tracking Device. Frightened for life, I scooped Molly up and dashed past the first house, then the second house and soon arrived at my house. I yanked out my keys and opened the door with one hand. Once inside, I put the kitten down and locked the door.

_What did that even mean? Someone is tracking me? Knows where I live and what I look like? How did they figure this out? Who even is they? Could it be multiple people? _

I slumped down, confused and scared. I didn't cry though. Well at first I didn't. I locked the back door along with the windows before sitting on the couch. I want to cry now but I still didn't. Molly started meowing and it reminded me to take her leash off.

"You should call mother and tell her. She'll call the police and find the guy for you." A voice said inside my head. That happens a lot. Voices inside my head talking to me about what to do. It was like my own two gods.

" Don't tell Mother! She'll think you crazy! Plus she already juggling with her job and the cat. Don't give her another thing to worry about, just keep it to yourself." Another voice exclaimed. Maybe I was crazy or imagining the whole thing. I just sighed before going with the second option. Keeping it to myself like always. Who could I tell anyways? I'm too quiet to stand up for myself. Never mind telling someone about this tracking device that has my name on it. My thought were interrupted when I heard a knock on the door. I froze.

" Flora? You there?" I recognized my mother's voice and I sighed in relief before opening the door.

" I'm here." I said softly and smiled slightly. But I could still hear the slight beeping like it was inside my head.


	2. Poppy

Poppy's POV

Massachusetts

2:00 pm

" Poppy!" The little five year old whined.

" Coming"! I called across the room. I really thought babysitting with Savannah and five kids would be easy. Well that's what Savannah said. She said she would watch three kids while I watched two of them. Now the fourteen year old was at the store, forgetting that mom told her to get food for everyone. Mom left a note and everything! So now it was me and the five kids. Jack, Justin, Jet, Jade and Jenny. Why do parents have to name all their kids starting with the same letter? It just gets confusing. Plus the kids scream if you get their names wrong. And Justin and Jet are twins so it super hard to tell apart. I had all the kids finger painting now while Savannah gets the food.

" Poppy"! The kid known as Jack called again. I scramble myself over to him and wipe the sweat of my temples.

" Yes?" I asked him.

" We're out of yellow paint! How can I paint the sun now?" He wailed and bumped Justin in the arm.

" Hey! You messed up my tree!" Justin cried and pointed to a greenish-brown blob. It looked nothing like a tree but at least he got the colors right. He is only six you know.

" Shut up, Justin! What can I do about MY sun?" Jack demanded.

" Will you two shut up?" Jade growled. She was the oldest of the group, at the age of ninr. She didn't want to finger paint like the little kids so she was playing on my d.s.

" I'll see if there is any more yellow paint." I said and looked over at Jade. " You're in charge but nothing major." I warned before setting off upstairs. Even if you go upstairs to get your phone, a fight could break out and some kid will be crying in the matter of seconds. It was good to have the oldest kid in charge for those matter of minutes but nothing more. I went into the bathroom and looked at the paint colors. Red, blue, orange and pink. No yellow. I sighed before heaving myself back downstairs.

" No yellow paint. But you can use orange." I said to Jack and he pouted. After a few seconds, he started to whine and then just had a full out tantrum. He screamed and threw himself to the floor.

" I want yellow"! He yelled over and over again.

" Shut up!" Jade hissed.

" You spilled my paint"! Justin cried and Jet pushed him. I groaned quietly.

" You better stop or you'll get a time out." I said to Jack and peered over at Jet and Justin's little scene. " That goes for you too." I added and looked back over at Jack.

" No"! Jack yelled.

" 1...". I counted and he still screamed.

"2..."! I threatened but he didn't stop. Just before I was gonna say three, Savannah came inside the living room with a large pizza. My sister wasn't half bad on looks. Her long, blond hair was pulled into a ponytail and her usually preppy clothes were worn and old at the moment. Savannah a pretty good sister despite the fact she was very forgetful. I looked nothing like her though. She has blond hair, I have red hair. She has blue eyes, I have green eyes. She get our stepfather's looks while I get our mom's traits.

" Who wants pizza?" She asked and placed it on the table inside the dining room. Instantly, Jack stopped his tantrum, Jet stopped fighting, Justin stopped pushing and Jade stopped complaining. Six hands raise and five kids yelled that they want some. Jet,Jack,Justin and Jade raced into the kitchen while Jenny slowly got up and came over to me. I slipped her two jolly ranchers and she smiled. I always rewarded the quietest one of the group. Jenny was eight so she was the second oldest but she was the most maturest of the group of kids.

" Thanks." Jenny said and we plopped down onto the couch. I turned the t.v onto the news and we chatted." Hear about the break ins?" Jenny asked a few minutes later.

" No,what break ins?" I asked.

" The hardware store a couple streets down had some stuff stolen. And the convenience store lost batteries, screw drivers and stuff like that. A fireworks store lost a bunch of supplies too. " Jenny explained. I picked up the newspaper off the table next to us and looked at the little article at the bottom.

" Looks like a house has been robbed too. The Brown's family summer house lost a bit of food, t.v's, laptops and other electronics.

" Weird." Jenny uttered, making a puzzled face.

" You should eat now before the the pizza gets cold." I advised her and she nodded before leaving the room.

_Why haven't they caught the robber yet? Couldn't they find some evidence? Fingerprints, footprints, hair samples, something left behind?_ I scrambled over to the front door before locking it. You never know when they'll strike. 


	3. Audrey and Finn

Audrey's POV

New York

6:00 pm

"Whoa, Audrey! Nice new look!" My best friend Hazel called as I walked into the house. I just curled my hair and dyed it brown before the party. If I learned one thing as I moved here to New York, it is that you need to make friends fast, join your group and party. I moved here a couple months ago and luckily adjusted quickly.

" Thanks. Love the new shirt." I said as I came over to her. She was my first friend here and now my best other friends were here too. We weren't the most popular or the most pretty or the most obedient group. We were known for our parties and our toughness. My grades weren't the best, B's and C's and conduct were horrible. But I promised next year I'm gonna raise my grades and focus in school.

" Got it from Old Navy, on sale. Oh and Finn, Luke and Ivy are waiting for us down stairs." Hazel reminded me before we scurried through the crowds of people. The preps had parties every month so we all came. Our feet tapped agents the stairs as we made our way down. Finn was sitting down in his chair, sipping soda when we came down. Luke was sitting across from Finn, his chair tipped up and he waved at us. Ivy was dancing to some music that was playing, almost hidden inside the crowd.

"Hey, over here!" Finn called with a smile. I smiled as I sat on the chair next to them.

" Hey guys." I said with a nod and Luke pointed over at the fridge.

" We have diet coke, regular coke, crush grape, water and Gatorade. Which one do you want?" He asked before getting up and opening the refrigerator door.

" Regular coke." I said and he poured me a glass and set it on the table.

" You look pretty tonight. I love the new hair color." Finn commented after sipping some Pepsi. I smiled again.

" Thanks. That jacket is pretty cool too." I said and winked.

" You guys are so cute when you flirt." Ivy said as she came out of the crowd and pulled up a chair.

" You're cute too." Luke said and gave her another glass of grape soda.

" I love the music here." I said as Kesha's new song, Timber started playing.

" Me too." Ivy said and tapped her foot to the music. " Look how many people are here tonight. It's more than double than last time." She commented.

" You know what I heard?" Luke said, leaning in. " I heard the prep group brought wine. And they might share if we pay a few bucks a cup." He whispered. Our eyes widened.

" Where the heck does a eleven year old get wine? She can't just get it at the store or something like that." I asked.

" Not sure. Just heard that from the groups over there-." Luke paused and pointed out near the corner of the room. There was a few girls and a couple boys pouring wine into cups. " See? There they are. I heard the girl stole it from a store. That might not be true but who knows?" He shrugged and leaned back in his chair.

Suddenly, a tall dirty blond boy and a brown haired girl charged down the stairs. " Everyone! Everyone, someone's here and it's banging on the door"! The boy shouted.

" Turn off the music"! The girl shouted and havoc broke loose. Someone turned off the music and people hid the sodas. The preppy girls hid the wine and everyone hid around. Me and Finn hid under the table while Luke and Ivy hid in the corner. Hazel hid inside the closet. Soon everyone was hiding ( which was about 25 people) and someone turned off the lights. It was pitch black. Finn put his arm around my shoulder as we heard footsteps down the stairs. My heart pounded as the footsteps came into our direction and my shoulders were squeezed by Finn. Somebody sniffled. I think it was Hazel who was behind us.

The next thing I knew, something attacked me and I felt something cover my mouth. It tasted funny for a hand and I realized it wasn't human. I felt a sharp pitch in my shoulder and I started getting sleepy. I felt Finn's hand loosen from my shoulders and I blacked out.


	4. Discoveries

It was a normal morning at the penguins HQ. Well the normal with flying Mort, loud music and mad gorillas throwing fruit normal. The thick fog didn't help the penguins and Marlene either.

" What now?" Marlene asked. She just got back up from a random fruit attack. They were hard to dodge too, even Skipper got knocked down a couple times.

" Keep trying to find something." Skipper yelled over the music and screaming. Kowalski blocked a mango and accidentally aimed it at Private.

"Ouch, Kowalski"! Private exclaimed once he fell onto his back. Kowalski laughed sheepishly.

" Or maybe not. Let's get inside before anyone else gets-." He stopped once Rico was swept off his feet from a melon. " Never mind, just get inside." He said and they jumped into the Head Quarters. Private sat down on the bottom bunk while Rico sat at the table. Marlene sat down on the step and Skipper and Kowalski stood up. " Kowalski options." Skipper said. Even now it was still hard to see with some fog inside the room. Kowalski paused.

" We could wait until the gorillas calm down." The scientist suggested.

" That could that all day. Plus someone could get hurt by then". Private spoke up.

" He's right." Skipper added and Kowalski focused on his blurry clipboard.

" Wait 'till the fog clears up?" He asked.

" That could take all day too." Marlene countered and sighed.

" Then I'm out of options." Kowalski muttered. Just then, the TV turned on and a penguin appeared on it. It was a she and she had black bangs and a highlight of red down her head and neck. Her head held up high and she held a serious expression but she expressed a warm smile.

" Hello, unit twenty-three." She paused and looked around. " Unit twenty-three? Skipper? Kowalski?" She asked.

" We're here! It's just foggy today." Skipper said and they tried to make their through the fog. After a few moments, Kowalski appeared through the fog and got closer to the TV.

" Ah, Kowalski. How have you been?" She asked.

" Alright. How about you, Gaby?" Kowalski asked as Skipper and Rico came into view.

" Whoa!" Private cried and a little thump was heard. Skipper slapped his forehead.

" Private, what was that for?" Marlene's whine was heard over near Private.

" Did you guys get a new member for the unit? 'Cause I swear I heard someone." Gaby asked.

" That's Marlene. Skipper's otter friend who lives next door." Kowalski explained. Gaby seemed to flash a bit of a warning glance at the leader but quickly nodded. Then Private and Marlene appeared in front of the television.

" Hello, unit twenty-three .. and Marlene. We have a bit of a problem on our flippers. Is Marlene qualified to hear this?" Gaby asked. She didn't want to be rude but she had to make sure about this otter. She did have that curious look in her eyes but now she glanced at the floor. Marlene was never really aloud at these kind of things.

" Yeah, she is. Plus if I send her home, she'll probably break an arm." Skipper said and Marlene rolled her eyes. Gaby chuckled a little.

" Alrighty then. Well there has been some robbing going on in Massachusetts. Plus a witness has said Blowhole had gone to Mass for the day." Gaby explained.

" What witness?" Skipper asked.

" A lobster was found wandering around near the base and we got some information out of him. He says Blowhole went to get some supplies for a new raygun. He won't say more than that and threats aren't working much." Gaby looked down at a paper and nodded. " That's how much we know so far. So I have a request for you guys to see what he's up to and stop him. Sound alright?" She asked.

" Alright." Skipper answered and Gaby smiled before the TV turned black.

" Gotta love Gaby." Private said and he sighed.

" Who is Gaby anyways?" Marlene asked.

" She's like the news reporter. Tells us new missions and what's going on and all that crap." Skipper some-what explained into fog. I think he growled too. I heard him clap his flippers.

" Oops, sorry Skipper! Was I staring off into space again?" Private asked.

" Yup." Skipper muttered.

" Huh?" Marlene asked. Marlene felt Rico tap her shoulder and she jumped.

" Private has crush on Gaby." He said quietly. It wasn't a whisper but wasn't too loud.

" Ohh, Okay." She said.

" Marlene, we have an assignment for you. Well- I do." Marlene heard Skipper say.

" Okay, shoot." She said.

" I'll need you, Kowalski.. and Rico to stay here and figure this out. We have the gorillas and fog to deal with no idea how to stop it. Me and Private can started heading to Blowhole's and see what we can do. Sound good?" Skipper asked. It was quiet for a moment but the heads started nodding.

" Alright. We'll try to think of something." Kowalski said and Rico agreed with a grunt.

" Can..can we do this by ourselves?" Private asked. It was true, we never tried to beat an enemy in a duo group but we're trying it now.

" I'm pretty sure we can try and succeed." Skipper said simply.

" When we start?" Rico asked.

" ASAP so about now." Skipper said and Private came over to his side. " Let's go."


	5. captured

Flora's POV

Vermont

7:00 am

I grabbed Molly and hocked her leash onto her collar before heading out the door. Mom told me to buy more cat food and treats before she got home. I was scared and the constant beeping was inside my head. It has been about a good three days sence I found the the tracking device. I opened the door and placed the cat down and we jogged onto the sidewalk. I would hear beeping and would scream. Beeping now became my greatest fear and I never went on that street now. I was glad that the pet store is far away from that street. I started running down the street and soon arrived at the pet store. My friend, Emma, was there too. She was talking to the cashier with a bag of dog food.

" Hey, Flora." She said when I came over to her.

" Hey, what's up?" I asked.

" Just buying some dog food, you?"

" Getting cat food and some threats." I answered and walked over to the shelves. I pulled out some meow mix and got a little container of treats before placing them on the counter. " Anything new with you?" I asked.

" Nothing really. Got a new puppy, a Beagle named buddy. That's about it." Emma said and picked up her bag. " I gotta go. It was nice seeing you again."

" You too." I said before Emma walked out the door. I gave the cashier a twenty dollar bill and stuffed my stuff inside a bag.

" Have a great day ma'am." She said and I walked out. I past one house, then another one, and then another. It was the next blue house that I felt a pinch in my neck. I gasped and took it out. It was a dart, a sleep dart I was pretty sure. I started getting sleepy and fell to my knees.

" God, what is happening?" I asked the sky, fighting to stay awake. I heard the beeping inside my head, but a lot louder. I screamed but stopped when I felt something cover my mouth. I couldn't tell what it was because my vision was now blurry. " What is happening?" I whispered before blocking out. 


	6. Gone

Me: Hey everyone! (As in everyone I mean the one or two people actually reading this) How are you liking the story so far? I'm a little rusty of human traits and life but what can ya do?

Marlene: enjoy the story!

Me: How'd you even get here?

Marlene: * Points to the hole in the wall. I groan. *

* * *

Poppy's POV

Massachusetts

9:00 am

" I'm glad you came back, Jenny." I said. Me and Mom arranged for just Jenny to come over so we can chit-chat.

" Yeah. I'm glad too. My house doesn't have any locks so someone could get in any moment." Jenny said and we walked into the living room. The bright walls and clouds gave the room a slight glow and the brown floor warmed my feet.

" Yeah, you're all set. Any new robbings around town?" I asked the eight year old.

" Only one more. It's several streets down, near the school. It got all the teachers freaked out today. Even was home incase the robber came to the school." Jenny reported.

" God, you would think they could catch the person by now! They've been on almost every street here in Orange!" I exclaimed, putting my hands in the air.

" I know! Some kids even said they seen footprints in the robbed stores. There has to be a better search."

" Yeah." I said and we sat down on the couch. " So how are your siblings?"

" Justin and Jet are still fighting, Jade is still complaining and Jack is still eating ten pounds of pizza." Jenny said and I laughed.

" You should have the right to complain, not Jade."

" So how is Savannah?" Jenny asked.

" Forgetful as usual. She's going to her friend's house now go see what her homework is for over the summer." I laughed and so did she.

" That's Savannah for you."

" Hey, you hungry? I got some chips and pizza left over." I asked.

" Sure." Jenny said and I got up and went into the kitchen. Then a small noise was heard.

" Hey, Jen? Did you hear that?" I asked. I heard that noise again.

" Jen?" I asked and looked into the living room. She was gone.

" Jenny, this isn't funny." I growled but fear edged my voice. I heard something squawk and the next thing I knew, there was lobsters on top of me!

" Ga! Jenny! Jenny, help! Get off!" Was the last thing I said before one of the red lobsters pinched my mouth. I felt a sharp pain in my bottom lip and tasted a little of blood. I heard another couple squawks from the lobsters and one I think growled. I mumbled for help but my voice was inaudible. Then I felt a pinch in my neck and I tried to find whatever it was. But A few lobsters pins my arms down, a few held my legs down and one was on my stomach. My vision blurry after that and my eyes dropped. I stopped struggling and I was beginning to be dragged away when I went unconscious.

* * *

Me: Sorry they're short. The chapters get really long soon. Next couple of chapters actually.

P.S: Orange is a real place in Massachusetts


	7. Trapped

Finn's POV

unknown place

unknown time

You know, when I woke up I thought I would be crying my eyes out and panicking. I did just get kidnapped and not sure what happened to my girlfriend. I sat up and looked around. The light tan walls and tan floor made the room look plain. What caught my attention was the beds. I was on a brown on with royal blue sheets and two pillows. The one next to me was white and had purple sheets and purple pillows. What surprised me was the girl on top of it.

Her hair was blond, straight and long. Her eyes were shut but I guessed they were blue and she had a mark- probably a birthmark- near the corner of her left eye. She looked a skinny. She wore a blue dress that had white polka dots and an orange belt. She also wore grey legging and black little boots. Little blue earrings hung from her ears and a necklace around her neck. There was another girl next to her on the green sheeted bed.

This girl's hair was bright red- I wondered if it was even natural to be that red. Her eyes were open but I think she was unconscious still. The forest green eyes glowed and face and arms had a bunch of scars on them. She had a red shirt on and a tan skirt on. She wore red earrings and a rainbow colored bracelet too. What I saw on the next bed made me get up.

There was Audrey in her black party shirt and her short worn jeans. Her newly brown, curly hair plopped agents the pillow. She had her black earring on and mascara too. I rushed up to her bed and started shaking her.

" Audrey! Audrey, wake up!" I cried, shaking her. She slowly opened her eyes and groaned.

" Who's there? Finn!" She got up and hugged me. " Where are we?" She asked.

" I don't know but we got company." I said, pointing over at the two sleeping girls.

" Should we wake them?" Audrey asked.

" Sure. You get that one with the red hair." I said and went over to the blonde. I shook her shoulder and whispered, " Hello?" Her bloodshot eyes opened and she screamed. I covered my ears and so Audrey.

" Ga! W-who are you? And who's that sleeping? And who's that girl over there? And where are we?" She asked.

" I'm Finn. That girl standing over there is Audrey. Not sure who that sleeping girl is. Who are you?" I asked. She paused, like thinking if she should tell us or not.

" Flora. Flora Silver." Just then, there was a loud meow.

" What the heck?" Audrey asked.

" Molly?" Flora said and got up. She looked under her bed and picked up a small, orange kitten.

" Aww, that kitten is so cute." I said and Audrey nodded.

" Thanks," Flora said quietly.

" Hey, girly. Wake up." I heard Audrey say and soon heard a groan.

" Jenny"! The red-head yelled and she snapped out of unconsciousness. She looked around and groaned. " Seriously? How many more times will I get kidnapped? This is the third time!" She paused and looked around some more. " Who are you guys?"

" I'm Finn." I introduced myself.

" I am Audrey."

" Flora." The girl said quietly. " And Molly my cat."

" Oh, I'm Poppy. Nice to meet you guys but where the heck are we?" She asked.

" No clue." I said and looked around. I went over to a door and opened it. " Found a bathroom."

" That's good to know." Poppy muttered.

" And a litter box for the cat." I added and Flora nodded.

" Hey, anybody know about the cameras on the wall?" Audrey asked.

" Nope." Flora replied. Sccrrreeeccchh!

" Someone's coming!" Poppy whispered-yelled. Me and Audrey got in front, ready to kick butt. Poppy tried to find a weapon and Flora hid in the back. A dolphin came in on a scooter! With lobsters following it!

" I am loosing it. I am really loosing it." I muttered.

" Am I the only one who sees the dolphin?" Poppy asked.

" Nope. I see it too." Audrey said. I took a good look at the dolphin. It was grey and had a red ore for an eye. There was a newly placed scar on it's neck too. In one of the lobsters claws was a tracking device. Then Flora screamed. Everyone, including the dolphin and the lobsters, covered their ears.

" S-s-so you were t-the one who dropped t-the tracking device!" Flora exclaimed. Then the tracking device started beeping and she covered her ears and shut her eyes.

" I think she has a beeping phobia." Poppy said and tried to calm Flora down.

" What do you want, you creepy scooter-riding one-eyed dolphin?" Audrey said and paused. " Wow never thought I would say that.." Then the dolphin held up something up. My arms aunamadicly went up in the air and so did Audrey's.

" He has a gun"! Poppy shouted and Flora picked up her cat.

" Oh god." Flora whispered. I felt a sharp pain travel up my left arm and then through my whole body. Flora was screaming and I think Poppy was too. I clenched my teeth as the shocking lasted for a good 30 seconds. Once it was over the soreness of the side effect kicked in and the crazed dolphin and little minions left. The dolphin squeaked a few words before leaving but I couldn't make the words out. But he wore a smug smiled which made me fidgety.

"Everyone alright?" Audrey asked the group.

" Yeah." I said and just then did I noticed that I fell to the floor during the shock.

" I am too. How about you Flora?" Poppy asked.

" I-I'm fine. Just a little shakened up." Flora said quietly. " They even shocked Molly too." She added and it took me a moment to remember the cat's name was Molly.

" Is she alright?" I asked Flora as she inspected the kitten. Molly was shaking and her fur stood up.

" She's alright. Just a bit scared." Flora said and patted the kitten. It seemed to calm them both down. I got off the ground and walked over to the door. It was before I tried to turn the knob that I noticed something. There was a black and grey watch on my wrist.

" What the heck?" I said, puzzled and held my arm up. " I don't own a black watch. Or any watches actually." Then Poppy looked at her clothings and then at the bracelet.

" Yeah? I don't own this bracelet either. It doesn't even match my uniform style!" Poppy proclaimed.

" And how did these earrings get in my ears? There not even pierced and they hurt like heck." Audrey groaned.

" I didn't have this necklace on either. I hate the color green." Flora said in her quiet voice. " And I didn't give Molly a bracelet. I didn't even know they make bracelets for cats never mind having one."

" That is really weird." Poppy said, rubbing her beautiful red hair. I gotta asked Audrey to dye her hair red too.

" Yeah." I said.

" And did that.. thing.. just shock us?" Audrey asked.

" How did it do that?" Poppy asked. " Seriously, I could use that for the kids I baby-sit." Poppy got a couple of looks.

" How old are you? Like, nine? Ten?" I asked.

" I'm twelve. Just pretty tiny for my age. How about you, Finn?" Poppy asked.

" Eleven. The same as Audrey." I said.

" Yeah." Audrey agreed.

" How old are you, Flora?" I asked.

" I'm ten. And Molly is eight months old." She said.

" Okay."

" Any idea how that dolphin did that?" Audrey asked. " 'Cause I didn't see no laser coming out of that gun-like thing."

" Is.. is it those things he gave us?" Flora asked softly. We all looked over at her.

" What things?" Poppy asked. Out of all of us, Flora seemed to be the less stable. I wonder if she was always this way.

" Finn's got the watch, I got the necklace, Audrey got the earrings and Poppy got the bracelet. I think the remote has a button and when he presses it, it goes to the equipment he gave us." Flora explained quietly. There was a short silence before I spoke up.

" I think she's right. I did feel the electricity in my left arm more than anywhere else."

" Yeah, my ears are still ringing from that." Audrey added. Then I looked around the room. Flora was no longer hiding on her bed but sitting up and talking to us. Audrey was not panicking and cry but communicating. Poppy was basically the same. I guess getting kidnapped three times really didn't change her personality. Then I got a better look at Poppy's face.

" You do know your lip is bleeding right?" I asked Poppy.

" You do know that your wrist is bleeding?" She said right back. I starred at her for a moment before looking at my wrist. She was right. It did have a good inch or so cut.

" No, I didn't know." I said blankly and went into the bathroom. The bathroom was pretty small but at least it had double sinks and a shower 'cause who knows how long we'll be here? I hoped not long but who knows why a crazed dolphin needs children? I yanked out a little white towel and putted it under the faucet. Then Audrey came inside too and then I noticed the cuts on her ears. Anger rose inside of me but I kept most of it down.

" Hey, Finn." She said and got herself her own little facecloth.

" Hey." I replied back and placed the wet towel on my wrist.

" How long do you think we'll be here?" She asked.

" I don't know. I never had a day as weird as this before so who knows?" I commented and she washed her face.

" Yeah. The only thing that comes close to this is when was teaching us to opera sing on 80's day." Audrey said and I laughed.

" That was pretty dang funny. And weird. But the crazy dolphin and snappy lobsters is weirder." I said, with a half smile on.

" I agree." Audrey said and it was quiet for a little while. After about ten minutes, I checked my watch: 10:30 pm.

" Hey, we should get to bed. It's getting late."

" Yeah, we should." Audrey said softly and kissed my cheek. We smiled and she put her facecloth down before we walked into the bedroom. The two lamps were off and a little light glowed from the bathroom. Poppy was looking up at the sky and her fingers were clasped together. She was mumbling a prayer. I most likely would too if I wanted to get out of here. She wrapped up her speech and looked up. Flora was up too and sitting up right, just staring at the ceiling.

" Hey, guys." Poppy said and yawned. " Hitting the hay?"

" Yeah." I said and got into my little bed. So did Audrey.

" Night, Finn." Audrey said.

" Night, Poppy." I said.

" Night, Flora." Poppy said.

" Good night friends." Flora said quietly and smiled. We all fell into a faithful sleep.


	8. scarred

Me: This chapter gets a bit depressing, just to warn you now.

* Loud Kaboom was heard*

Me: Rico? How'd you get here?

Marlene: Who do you think helped me blow up the wall?

Me: You owe me a lot of money!

* * *

Poppy POV

still unknown place

still unknown time

" Poppy! Poppy, get up"! I heard someone whisper-yell into my ear. My bloodshot eyes opened and I immediately sat up.

" What's happening?" I asked and saw Audrey over me. Finn was now calming Flora down and she was covering her ears.

" He's coming! The crazy dolphin guy is coming." Audrey said and I got out of bed and stood up. Audrey held her arms in defense stance and then Finn came up over to her and got into an attack stance. I cartwheeled over and got into a defense pose.

" Three years for karate and gymnastics really gets payed off." I said. Flora scrambled out of her bed and copied Poppy's stance and put on a mean look.

" Yeah, I been doing karate for five years." Finn said.

" I did karate for two years at my old home." Audrey said.

" I took judo for a couple months." Shy little Flora said.

" Perfect." I the dolphin on the scooter came inside the room and held up a different looking gun. This time we didn't throw ours hands in the air, we got ready to attack and dodge. The dolphin looked puzzled at our personality change but fired at Flora. A bright light shined out of it. She dodged quickly and yelled her battle cry.

" Ohhh, this means war"! Sweet,well now non-sweet Flora snarled. I glanced at Audrey who looked like she seen a ghost. The dolphin fired again but instead at Finn. He tumbled over and then the speed of the gun shots quickened. One at Audrey, then another at Flora and then one at me. We all dodged it. The dolphin snarled and soon three lobsters came in having the same type of ray gun.

"We're screwed." Flora muttered.

" What happened to the war crazy girl?" I asked, dodging one laser.

" She figured out the war team is outnumbered and weaponless." Flora muttered and jumped out of the way. Audrey yelped but managed to dodge the next one and Finn's grunt was heard.

" Don't lose hope? Flora, look out!" I screamed.

" What?" She said and we both got hit by the laser light. And it HURT! I screamed and so did Flora. Pins and needles ran up my spine, my head got cloudy, the bracelet added extra shock and my throat stung. I fell to my knees, I think and soon Finn's and Audrey's screams filled the air. I couldn't see now and I heard Audrey pray while screaming. My stomach burned and my skin itched like crazy. I think I was out for a few moments. I reentered the world and screamed. My hands were black. And they weren't hands, they were wing-like. My stomach was white and my feet were black too. I didn't feet any teeth nor lips but a.. beak?

" I'm a penguin! I'm a penguin! I'm a penguin! I'm a penguin!" I yelled and then looked around. Flora had a white belly too and little pinkish-orange feet. Her head was all black and her eyes had a white ring over it. Audrey and Finn looked more similar. They had a black beak, a white strip on there face and more black. They had white stomachs with splattered black spots at the top and black little feet. Then I noticed Flora more carefully. She totally lost it. She was still screaming and rocking back and fourth. Her eyes sparkled with tears but they never fell down her black cheeks. Well, by now we all lost it. I didn't even notice 'till now that tears were streaming down my cheeks. My cheeks burned from the cuts that were across them and they were bleeding. I just sat there and noticed the scars from my human body were here now. My scar on my foot appeared, the one on the corner of my forehead was there too, the one on my shoulder and a tiny one near the corner of my eye. Now that I was a penguin, they all showed like glowing stars on a new moon night.

" Finn. Finn, you alright?" Audrey asked. " Finn!" She screamed and burst into tears. Just then, the door burst open. There stood two penguins. We were mostly defenseless at the moment so I growled and stood up. Slowly, I took a step forward and one of them tried to take one step forward. I pointed my flipper up and hissed.

" Anyone one of you get any closer, I'll murder both of you!" I yelled. They stared at me like I was crazy. No- scratch that. They were starring BECAUSE I'm crazy.

" It's okay, we're here to rescue you. " The small one with the British accent said. Just then did I notice several little scrapes they wore. We all looked like went through a war. I glared.

" I don't believe you"! I growled. I looked over at Audrey. " Is Finn dead?" I asked.

" No, he's breathing. It was just shock. But he gave me the shock of my life times two." Audrey said.

" That make's two of us." I muttered and turned back around. The one with the flat head had took about three steps forward. I lunged at him and he took the surprise by landing on his back. That was pretty loud thump. It made Audrey look over and his friend gasp. Just like nothing happened, he got up. I mentally gulped but tried tackling him down. He dodged and eventually got me pinned down.

" We're here to help. Seriously!" He said. His voice was deep but smooth.

" They why are you attacking me?" I growled.

" I didn't. You attacked me." He countered.

" No I did not." I growled. He rubbed his back and showed me his blood-wet flipper.

" I didn't make any really damage besides pinning you." He said and got up.

" Do you know about this dolphin guy? And how he can turn humans into penguins?" I asked, my suspicion still high. He nodded.

" Wait, you guys were humans before we showed up?" He asked.

" Yeah. We got kidnapped..." I stopped and looked over at Audrey. " Can you calm Flora down?" Audrey nodded. Flora was still rocking and crying at the same time.

" So we got kidnapped and brought here and he shot us with his ray-guns. Explains the cuts and blood. We've been here sence yesterday afternoon." I explained. " Who are you guys anyways?" I asked.

" I'm Skipper and this is Private. Blowhole aka that dolphin is our enemy and we usually have to stop him before he takes over the world." The penguin know as Skipper explained.

" There's a lifestyle for ya." I muttered and he shrugged.

" You get used to it. Anyways, who are you and those guys?" Skipper asked.

" I'm Poppy, the guy passed out of their is Finn, the girl rocking back and forth is Flora and the girl hysterically crying is Audrey." I explained. I paused. " We're uh, a little freaked out at the moment."

" Then why aren't you?" He asked.

" I was kidnapped when I was seven, kidnapped again when I was nine and now. And I am a bit freaked out at the moment. I usually don't  
scream at people-er penguins that I'm gonna murder them."

" Me and Private-". Skipper began but I stopped him.

" One question. What's up with your names? I'm pretty sure guys don't skip and someone name isn't very private." I said and Skipper snorted.

" They're military names. Like, you know, skipper means captain. And private is the lowest rank, the rookie of the group." The apparently captain explained.

" Oh. But I still have my eye on you." I said, but my suspicion lower a little.

" You sound just like Skippah, he says that like everyday." The British boy, named Private said.

" Not every day... every other day really." He said and I rolled my eyes.

" How 'bout you get your crying friend there, I'll get that boy over there and Skippah can get that girl." Private said. I nodded and went over to Audrey.

" Hey, girl." I whispered as Audrey got rid of her tears with a tissue.

" Hey. Who are those two penguins over there?" Her crackly voice asked.

" They're here to help. They try to stop that dolphin for a living apparently." I explained and helped her to her feet. Private was already dragging Finn to the doorway and Audrey chuckled.

" What?" I asked.

" I wonder how I can kiss Finn with a beak." She said and I laughed.

" Ask that Skipper guy. He must know."

" I can't ask him, plus I can figure it out of my own." She said and winked.

" I'll ask him for you." I said. I looked over at the flat-headed penguin. He was whisper talking to Flora and she stopped rocking and was wiping her tears away with her flipper.

" Alright." Agreed Audrey.

" Hey Skipper!" I called. He and Flora both looked up.

" Audrey wants to know how you supposed kiss with a beak." I said. He raised any eyebrow and Flora bursted out laughing. That even caught mine and Audrey's attention. When never seen her laugh before. It was a nice laugh compared to Audrey's.

" She means her boyfriend, Finn. The one who unconscious right now." Flora explained more.

" Ohhh." Skipper said. Now me and Audrey laughed. I think Private chuckled too. Then he shrugged. " How am I supposed to know? That same as a human I guess." Now Private was really laughing.

" Kowalski got hear this one." He laughed. Skipper rolled his eyes.

" I do suppose you know. You almost kissed the TV when Gaby was on it." Even if I didn't know Gaby, I chuckled. I couldn't imagine a penguin doing that. Private's cheeks turned red. I couldn't tell if it was from being mad or because he was embarrassed. Maybe both.

" Shut up, Skipper." Private snarled. That seemed to interest Skipper but he just shrugged.

" Anyways, who is Kowalski?" Flora said, back to her quiet self.

" He's our friend. A scientist too. He part of our little team that helps beats blowhole and any other people who try to take over the world. And Rico is also part of our team. He's a bit crazy but you'll get used to it." Skipper explained and the brit added that they good, nice people. Skipper nodded to that.

" That's good. All we need is more crazy people trying to kill us." I said. Just then, Finn screamed.

" Gah a penguin!" He screamed.

" It's okay Finn, were are here to save you and your friends." Private said and let go for Finn. He scrambled to his black feet.

" How, how do you know my name?" He asked then looked at his flippers. " I'm really losing it... God, what did I do?"

" Finn, it's okay! Sort of.. The ray-gun things turns us into penguins and Skipper and Private are here to get us out of here." I said.

" Where's Audrey?" He asked.

" I'm right here,baby." She said.

" Thank God. I really thought those things were gonna kill us." Finn said in a sigh of relief.

" Uh, we should kinda hurry. We just locked Blowhole in a closet and he could be out any minute." Skipper warned.

" I think you're just being paranoid." Private said quickly. As if on cue, a loud yell fill the air.

" Pen-goo-ins!" That dolphin, apparently Blowhole, screamed. Skipper swore.

" Oops, sorry." He apologize and Audrey laughed.

" Don't be, I say shit all the time." It was true. If you were in the tough party group, you had to swear like it was your friends nicknames.

" Even I hear that a lot." Flora said, and we jumped up as we hear the screech of the wheels. Now Blowhole came into the room and ten lobsters at his side.

" Skipper, I should have known these weak girls couldn't escape on their own and that boy is too dumb." He said. I growled and flipped over and snarled at him.

" Weak? Weak! You little!" I said. Skipper and Private were trying to get into attack stance, but it failed.

" Next time, we'll bring the whole team." Skipper muttered and the two broke into their separate stances. Audrey and Finn dashed themselves over.

" Dumb? I bet you don't know the square root of 12 is!" Finn growled.

" Weak? Says the dolphin who can't keep a couple of girls trapped!" Audrey taughted. Flora slid on her stomach over to my side and crossed her flippers.

" What, quiet girl has nothing to say?" The dolphin taughted back and had a smug smile on. I told him off.

" This quiet girl has a lot to say. You're sick to steal children! I'm not weak. Weak is giving up and if you think for one little moment that I will give up, you're dead wrong. Think twice before messing with me and my friends!" I yelled. Well that wasn't exactly what I did say. I added in a bunch of swears into that and it left even my friends a little shocked.

" Flora!" Finn said but I shrugged.

" Quiet girl becoming more brave, is she now? I guess I'll have to change that." The dolphin said smugly and pulled out a gun.

" Flora look out, that's his laser gun!" Skipper warned just as the laser missed Flora.

" That's all you got?" She taughted and the lobsters joined in. It was getting harder now. I dodged one laser and then Audrey dodged one too. Then one lobster, a brave one, jumped closer to Finn and he kicked it back. Now all the lobsters were pushing forward and trying to attack. I hit one but three more came over. They piled up like they did to Private before. One I kicked, another I flipped and one I punched. They went onto the others and gave me a minute to catch my breath. What would happen if one of us got hit by the laser? I wondered and looked around.

" Get off!" I heard Flora yell. Maybe she was quiet, shy and sweet but she can be a real fighter. She kicked a lobster and threw another a few feet away. The one that was launched away didn't move. I looked over at Finn who had a lobster's claws buckled onto his back. He managed to get it off, but was bleeding a little bit. Audrey had two to deal with. One attacked her feet while the other attacked her head. She seemed to struggle a little bit with that. It was that small Private that surprised me. He was around my age and had five lobsters on him. One jumped from his left and didn't get the chance to land before he was thrown a few feet back. The one on his right tried to claw him, and succeeded for a few seconds until he was flipped. The other two jumped at the same time, and one got the chance to buckle onto his back just like Finn. He swatted the other one away and squashed the one on his back. Skipper wasn't doing well either. He had the dolphin to deal with. And that dolphin was the only one who had a laser. By now, Blowhole was off his scooter ( he probably pushed him off) and fighting with Skipper. The penguin seemed to be at the disadvantaged, already being hurt before they started the battle. But all the penguins were at the disadvantage. What would happen if we lost? We would be stuck here and the penguins would be here too. I bet he if was sick enough to trap children, he's sick enough to torture us too. Fear struck inside me and I started to fend off a lobster. He was already tired and weak from fighting so it was easier than before. Then I heard a gasp of pain. I've heard a couple of these but this one seemed louder. Oh God. My eyes stretched with horror.

" Skipper!" I shouted. Too late as usual. The dolphin had the laser gun in his flipper and his idea succeeded. The laser went right to his flipper and a big gash layed there. Skipper covered his shoulder and swore. I guess the others noticed too, because the next thing I knew me, Flora and Private attacked the dolphin. Private went right for the face and Flora tried to break his fake eye. I tried to knock him out. By the time I did, Audrey and Finn made all the lobsters unconscious and Blowhole had a good amount of cuts and slices. Flora was talking to Skipper now.

" Anybody else injured?" Flora said in her loud voice.

" I'm good." I said, panting a little.

" I'm fine too." Audrey said after me.

" I just have a scrap, nothing major." Private said.

" I think something got me in the back." Finn replied and got some blood onto his flipper.

" How about you Flora? That cut on your flipper looks not too well. " I asked. She looked at her somewhat bad cut and shrugged.

" I'm fine. I'll see if they got anything for healing. " Flora said and took off into the bathroom.

" Be quick"! Private called and he stood up. " We better leave soon in case these guys wake up." He said, pointing to the unconscious lobsters and dolphin. I nodded and so did Audrey.

" Wait a minute, anyone seen Molly?" Flora asked when she came back.

" Who's Molly?" Private asked.

" My kitten." She said. " Molly, come here girl."

" What do you want?" A voice said. " And who are you guys?" My jaw dropped. Molly appeared from behind the bed. Her orange fur and glimmering green eyes shown.

" Okay, now we can talk to cats now? What's next? Being able to fly?" Flora asked.

" You can talk to any animals. Otters,lemurs,elephants,cats,dogs. Any animal." Skipper said.

" Huh." Audrey said.

" Did you hear all that happened? Do you even known who he is?" Finn asked, beckoning over at Skipper.

" Yeah. That dolphin, forgot his name, turned you guys into penguins." Molly explained. Flora chuckled.

" I'd never thought my cat was British."

" I'd never thought I was talk to British cat and meet New Yorkers." I said.

" Agreed." Flora added. Audrey and Finn just shrugged.

" We better get going." Private edged and he turned to Flora. " Find anything?"

" Just an old rag." She said and tossed it to Skipper.

" Thanks." He said we started to get moving.

" Pen-goo-ins"! Blowhole shout was heard and we turned around. He looked ticked off and was crawling over to his scooter which was nearby.

" Run"! I shouted and we dashed out of the room. 


	9. chase

Hey, I got a question for you guys. Who's your favorite character? Poppy, Molly, Flora, Finn or Audrey? R&R

* * *

Flora POV

still unknown place

around 1:00

Once the yell pierced the air, we ran. Even if we were injured, nobody was hurt on their legs. I tried to shut the door and lock it but the knob came off. I just shut the door and sprinted after the others. We were sliding and I could see Poppy struggling with that. "Come on!" I said and gave her flipper a tug before she could crash into the wall. She didn't comment on that and we made a sharp turn. I turned around to see Blowhole a couple yards behind us.

" He's gaining on us"! I squeaked.

" What now?" Molly asked.

" No clue. Just try to shake him off." Private said.

" If only we had Kowalski." I heard Skipper say.

" Where are we anyways? I never figured that out." Finn asked.

" Coney island." Private said as we made another turn. Then more laser shots interrupted us.

" Gah!" Audrey squeaked as a laser hit her foot. Thank goodness she didn't need her feet to slide. I felt a laser skim my back but I said nothing about it. Then Skipper pulled out a device that looked a bit like an old phone.

" Kowalski? You there?" Skipper asked as we tried to zigzag our way down the hallways.

" Yeah, what's going there? I hear screaming." A voice, which I guess is Kowalski, said.

" That's Audrey. I think she got shot in the foot with the laser." Skipper commented.

" Wait.. what?" Kowalski asked.

" Look no time to explain. Me and Private figured out that 3 girls and a boy were being held captive here. Blowhole turned them into penguins and were.." Skipper was cut off as the walkie-talkie was hit with a laser. Now Private swore.

" There goes our back up and ride." Private muttered. I looked over at the rest of the group. Finn and Audrey were side by side and were in the front. Skipper and Private were in the middle and Poppy and me were in the back. Then we made another sharp turn and the door appeared. But then I noticed something.

" Poppy"! I cried and slid back over to her. She must have crashed into the wall because she was on her back with a black eye.

" Ugh, I think I hit the wall." She groaned and I helped her to her feet.

" Just stay by my side and -hurry up. The dolphin is coming"! I squeaked and we dashed. Once we arrived at the door, I noticed the big puddles near it. I opened the door and found a rush of water coming inside. Me and Poppy held our breath and went into the ocean. I was surprised how long I could hold my breath compared to a human but I cleared the thoughts inside my head and focused on reaching the top. Once I got to the top, Poppy's head bobbed up and she looked around. Finn,Audrey,Skipper and Private were a couple yards away. We swam over to them.

" Glad that's over." Finn muttered.

" We're not in the clear yet. We need to make those jetpack's Kowalski made before and were all still injured." Skipper said. I looked around the group.

" And can we add food on the list? We have eaten in a days." Poppy added.

" Wait, anyone seen Molly?" I said.

" Who's Molly again?" Private asked.

" My cat. She's British." I said and looked around.

" She's over there." Audrey said and pointed to the orange silhouette come over to us.

" And we'll be sure to find food in the water." Private added. I peered around at the group again. Poppy seemed to have a black eye and several scraps on her neck and stomach. Private had a couple cuts across his face and body too. Finn had the two long slices that were still bleeding on his back. I had a few cuts,bruises and gashes but nothing much. Audrey had her foot almost slice off and Skipper still had that gash on his flipper.

" And I'll need to find some herbs." I said.

" What do we need herbs for? Audrey asked.

" I know herbalism." I said and got some confused looks.

" You know, herbalism. To heal using natural remedies such as plants." I explained.

" Ohh." Everyone said in usion.

" Alright. So we need to get the supplies to make the jetpacks, get some herbs, and some food." Private said.

" How 'bout we go into groups of two and get what we need?" Poppy asked.

" Sounds good." Skipper agreed.

" I can get some food 'cause I can't walk on my foot." Audrey said.

" And I can get some herbs. Seance I'm the only one who knows herbalism." I muttered.

" I'm not injured too much. I think I can sneak into the stores." Private said.

" I can help you, Private." Finn said.

" And I can help Audrey. I can barely see with my eye." Poppy says.

" I'll help Flora out sence that's the last task to do." Skipper said.

" Well that was easy." Finn laughed. He had a nice, soft laugh.

" And Private, can you see if you can get some bandages too?" He nodded and Just then, Molly came over.

" What up now?" The British cat asked.

" Just deciding what to do. Do you want to sneak into the stores, go fishing or go collect some plants?" Audrey asked.

" I'll get some fish. I have fish 24/7 at my place in Vermont." Molly said.

" What are you talking about? I give you food everyday!" I exclaimed to her.

" That cat food is terrible. Plus it's your mother who never gives me food." Molly said in disgust.

" She doesn't give me food either. Just leaves 50 dollars on the table and say she'll be back in a few days." I muttered and then noticed the others going into their groups.

" So in two hours we'll meet up here. If your done by two hours, then just look around." Finn said, with Private by his side.

" Alright." Poppy said, with Molly and Audrey at her side. With that, the two guys disappeared into the city and the three girls divided into the water. Then Skipper came up to me.

" Let's get started."

* * *

Me: And for herbs, I'm using warrior cats style.  
Leafpool: YES!  
Me: Get out of POM! * Makes the cat disappear into dust*  
Me: * waving my arms around* You didn't see anything! 


	10. herbs

Me: Hello again!

Leafpool: Shut up!

Me: How did she get back here? Security!

Leafpool: Noo! * runs away*.

Me: That works too. Anyways, I don't know how much I can update bc I'm going back to school again. Also, I officially got a new camper!

Leafpool: * pops her head around the corner* Road trip!

Me: Get out of here!

* * *

Flora's POV

Coney Island

Around 3:00

" So what are we looking for?" Skipper asked as we walked near the more grassier part of the island.

" It's a common, big green leaf. Smells a bit tangy." I said and looked at the plants. " It's called Dock."

" Do you know what all plants do?" He asked.

" Most but not all." I said back.

" Then what's this do?" He asked, pointing to a bunch of bell shaped flowers.

" It helps you swallow easier and it sweetens mixtures. It's called Heather Nectar." I explained and plucked one of the flowers. I picked off the petals and gave him one. " Try it, they taste good." He gave me an unsure look.

" You try one first." He said.

" You don't trust me, do you?" I asked.

" I only trust a few people." He said. I was about to put it inside my beak, when I realized I was a penguin. I rip the petal into pieces and then put it inside my mouth. It was nice and sweet. Then he ripped the petal like I did and tried it. " Does taste good." He admitted.

" Told ya." I said and gave him a few more before pointing other plants out. " There's horsetail, Lavender and Marigold." I said and went over to the yellow plants.

" What does the marigold do?" Skipper asked.

" Stop bleeding and infections." I replied before squeezing the juice out of one of the leafs and putting it on a couple of my cuts. I handed him a leaf.

" How do I use this?" He asked, apparently not paying attention to what I just did.

" Get the juice of the leaf onto any minor cuts." I said but he still didn't seem he got it.

" Who the healer in your little team?" I asked.

" Kowalski and Marlene can help a little bit too." Skipper said.

" Figures. Just hold your flipper out." I said. He obliged and I put the leaf's juice on . " Get it now?" I asked. He nodded and I still looked around. I saw a few flowers and berries I didn't know but for the most part, I knew them all. I then saw Ragweed and picked a few and put them into a pile. I added a few marigolds too. I found two tansy plants and them into the small pile too. I saw some foxglove seeds too but knew they were poisonous. After a little while I found the dock and placed a couple in the pile. I added a few heather nectar to sweeten it up.

" Can you help me carry these back?" I asked, pointing to the pile which had a couple leafs, a couple stems and few pedals.

" Sure." He said and picked up half of the pile.

" Careful." I warned as I picked my bunch up.

" I will be." Skipper said and we started walking back to our desalinated spot. " Where did you learn all this stuff?" He asked.

" Well with my mother away so much, I used the money to get a herb book. I found most of the herbs in my backyard and tested them out. I remember going fishing and I didn't fish at all. I collected the different types of herbs for swampy conditions. Like water mint, tormintil, rush and marigold." I explained.

" Wow. You'll might find some herbs in the park. Everyone complaining about the bushes and flowers everywhere. I think I found Dock their too." Skipper said.

" Yeah, where are we going once we get off Coney Island?" I asked.

" Me and Private live at a zoo in New York. Central Park zoo to be exact. And there's a park right outside the zoo." Skipper explained.

" What types of animals are there?" I asked.  
" There's penguins, an otter, lemurs, chimps,flamingos,elephants. I can just go on." Skipper answered.

" Oh, wow." It was silent for a little while but I spoke up again. " Do you think we'll ever be human again?"

" Most likely yes. Kowalski could make that ray gun like Blowhole did and turn you back if you wanted." Skipper said.

" Well I do like being a penguin so far. It's such a adventure compared to my little house in Vermont. My mom probably doesn't even care that I'm gone. It'll bring down the cost of things." I said. Skipper didn't comment to that. What could he say to that anyways?

" Any idea what time it is?" He asked.

" No clue. Only Finn has a watch and we left around noon so about 12:30 or so." I replied.

" Then we have a while." He said. Just then, my stomach growled.

" I'm guessing Blowhole never fed you guys." Skipper said.

" Yeah he didn't. I could find some mints to eats on the way back." I said and we kept walking. I did pick up a few bunches of mints and ate a couple of them before Skipper spoke up again.

" I think we're almost there. I see the spot we were at." He said and we started sliding over. Nobody was there at first but Audrey head came above water.

" Hey guys". She said.

" Hey". I said.

" Where is everyone?" Skipper asked.

" Molly and Poppy are still fishing. They caught three fish already and I got the fourth. They make a great team with their violence. Private and Finn hasn't come back yet but there's a piece of wood, some nails and a hammer there." Audrey reported.

" Where is there exactly?" Skipper asked. She pointed to a dock several yards upward.

" We're all camping out of there apparently." She said.

" Once you get to the dock, wait for me so I can use some of these herbs. Tell Poppy that too if you see her." I said and she nodded before swimming away.

It didn't take to long to reach the dock. Fish were already plopped down into a little pile and there was three like Audrey said. I placed my bunch of herbs down and started organizing them. Skipper placed his down and I picked up a dock leaf.

" Almost forgot. Sit." I said and be obeyed. " This might sting." I said and used the herb. He winced.

" No kidding." He muttered and I threw the leaf into the water. Just then, Audrey can back. Now she held two fish in her mouth and placed them on the dock.

" Hey, Flora. Hey,Skipper." She said tiredly and jumped onto the dock. She clearly looked sore and tired. Scratch that. She look exhausted and starved. Skipper got back to his feet and I got back to herbs sorting.

" Can you give her some dock and marigold too? And one poppy seed?" I asked him, looking up from the herbs.

" Sure." I said. Audrey gave him an unsure look.

" You know what you're doing?" She asked.

"Nobody trusts anyone nowadays. Now sit." She sat down and he got the supplies he needed. I saw him take her flipper and put the marigold on. He seemed to known what he was doing. He gave her another couple petals of marigold and smeared it onto her neck.

" Is this perfume? It smells like it." Audrey commented.

" It's marigold." He said and putted the dock on her shoulder. She winced but didn't say anything. Skipper handed her a poppy seed.

" What's this for?" Audrey asked.

" It eases pain and...What is the major side effect to the poppy seeds?" Skipper asked me.

" Makes you sleepy in moments." I said.

" Yeah, sleepiness." He agreed and she swallowed the small seed.

" Yuck, these taste terrible." Audrey commented.

" Then have one of these." Skipper said and handed her a few petals of the heather nectar. " They taste nice and sweet." She took them gulped each one down. She seemed satisfied after a few moments. Then Molly and Poppy appeared.

" Hey guys." Molly said, placing a fish down in the pile. She looked a little tired but not as much compared to Poppy and Audrey. I got up from my sorting and came over to Poppy.

" Your eye hurt?" I asked. She shrugged.

" A little. And my foot too." She said and she sat down, expecting where this was going. I took some marigold petals, tansy leaves and goldenrod leaves and put them into a big dock leaf. I put the dock leaf filled with herbs in front of Molly. She gave me a puzzled expression.

" I need you to chew these." I said and she started chewing them and then put them back onto the leaf. I put the poultice into the water and handed it back to Poppy. " Put these up to your eye." I said and started gathering up more marigold. I smeared the marigold leaves on her foot and she smiled in thanks. By now Audrey and Skipper just sat around, waiting for Private and Finn to get back.

" Hey, anyone know what time it is?" Skipper asked. Audrey got up and walked over to Finn's watch which was on the ground. She snatched it up.

" It's 3:30." She said. I nodded heard Poppy's stomach growl. I scurried over to the herbs and picked about a flipperful of cloves and mints. I handed some to Audrey, Poppy and Molly. " What are these?" Audrey asked.

" Are these cloves?" Poppy said.

" Yeah. A little snack while we wait for Finn and...Private to get back." It took me a moment to remember the pudgy British penguins name. The girls nodded and ripped the plants up so they could actually eat them. And then, Private and Finn came over, with flippers full of stuff.

" Hey everyone." Finn said, dropping his stuff down. He had two blankets, a little first aid kit, duck tape, straps and a bottle of soda. Private was rolling two bottles down to the dock.

" Hey. What's up with the soda bottles?" Audrey asked.

" You'll see." Private said before he could respond. She shrugged. " And we got more bottles down there. Anyone care to help?"

" I'll help." I said first.

" Me too." Poppy said. Soon after me and Poppy volunteered, everyone else did too. Finn lead the way to a bunch of bottles lay down on the ground. I got one, Poppy got one, Private got one and Skipper got one. Finn and Audrey picked up some extra stuff and we headed back to our camp with Molly following in the back.


	11. night time

Poppy's POV Coney island 4:00 pm We were back at the dock when Audrey started screaming. Then Flora was screaming too and then Finn. It was then that I felt a shock wave travel up my arm and through my body. I gasped and the screaming died down to gasps and pained looks. My mined got a bit cloudy and after what felt like forever, the shocking stopped and the soreness kicked in. I noticed Skipper and Private stopped rolling their soda bottles and looked over at us. " Stupid bracelet!" I exclaimed and threw the multicolored thing into the ocean. The two military boys exchanged glaces. Flora threw her necklace into the ocean, with a pained and frustrated cry. Finn threw his onto the ground and the watch broke. He started rubbing his wrist. " Uh, did I miss something?" Skipper asked. We all turned to him and Private who looked confused. " Oh yeah, they never knew." I said. " That dolphin, Blowhole gave us some things that shocked us at the cue of a button. We forgot to take them off." I explained, pain still edging in my voice. " Well there gone now." Private said, pointing to the broken watch. " That's for sure." Skipper said. " Everyone alright?" Audrey said and let out a long sigh. " This like the third time I said that sence yesterday. Is it always gonna be like this?" She asked. " Things will get better. I promise. The whole Blowhole thing only happens once or twice a year. The zoo is a bit more peaceful." Skipper said confidently and maybe a bit forcefully. It was quiet after that. Not really quiet but like dead silence. All you could hear was the faint traffic from far away and the rolling of the soda bottles. I hope the zoo is more peaceful. But I know the truth. Animals and people could be cruel and we suffer. The hard part is raising your head up high and getting back to your feet before it sucks you in. By ' it' , I mean fear. Flora has already shown that she could get sucked into fear by beeping. Some people can totally loose it and are mentally broken. I haven't broke yet. Maybe cracked a little but not totally broken. Flora seemed to have a little to many cracks but is still held together. I didn't know much for Audrey but she seems to be a bit rusty on sanity, along with Finn. My thoughts went away as we arrived at the dock with the bottles. " Want to eat before making the jet packs?" Skipper asked. Some nodded and some didn't care. I sat down next to Flora, who sat next to Audrey. Audrey sat next to Finn and Finn sat next to Private. Skipper was next to me and Private as we made a circle. Their was luckily six fish caught. Flora showed some lavender, mints and heather nectar to spice up the fish. I put some heather nectar on mine and took a bite. Didn't taste bad at all. " So how is soda bottles gonna help us get to New York?" I asked. " There's a way you can turn them into jet packs. I think I remember what to do." Private said before taking a bite of his fish. It was quiet again but soon Flora stood up. " I gotta go get some strengthening herbs. I will be back soon." She said before sliding away. She caught on good with sliding, while me.. not so well. " Can you tell us more about this zoo we're going too?" Audrey asked. " Well there's a lot of animals. There's Marlene the otter, Julien the ring-tailed lemur, Maurice the lemur, Mort the mouse lemur, Joey the kangaroo, some gorillas, Burt the elephant and some ducks. There's others too but I can't think of them right off the top of my head." Private said. " We get our own habitat which basically is concrete with water surrounding it." Skipper said and we looked a bit disappointed. " And a base underground. But you'll see it when you get there." Private added. " Sounds nice." Finn said and smiled. " Hit the deck"! I heard Skipper say and I caught a glimpse of something falling. Audrey, Molly and Finn dived into the water and me, Private and Skipper just went on our stomachs. Then the mysterious object fell onto the dock. There was a parachute attached to it and it covered the object up. Skipper got to his feet and signaled us to stay where we were. He slowly walked up to it and pushed the parachute away. It was a kind of walkie-talkie. " What the heck?" He said and picked it up. He pressed a button on it and a message started playing. " Skipper? Private? Are you guys alright? Me and Rico fixed the gorillas problem. Thank god for Marlene. But.." Before the message could continue, a falcon swooped down knocked Skipper down and picked up the phone. She smirked at his really, really confused face. " That's for dumping me." The falcon said before flying away. " How the hell did Kitka get on this island?" Skipper said dumbfounded. I'm guessing she was his girlfriend at one point and by the sound of it, he dumped her. " You just had to break up with her." Private muttered. " .Fred. What did you expect me to do?" He growled. Private just shrugged and dropped the conflict. " Now Kowalski and Rico will be as worried as ever." Private commented. Just then did I notice the sunset starting to fade away into darkness. Now the only light was coming from the full moon that lays in sky. I think Flora noticed too because she was starring up at the sky. Now I could only see the outline of everyone. " I think we hold the jet pack making 'till tomorrow." I said. It was silent but I think some were nodding their heads. Then the slight creaking of the dock wood told me someone was there. " I'm back." Flora said, and I think she dropped some herbs down onto the deck. " Just in time to hit the hay." Skipper said and Finn got up. " There's six of us and two blankets. How is this gonna work?" Finn voice filled the air. It was quiet for a moment. " Girls on one, boys on the other?" Audrey suggested. " Sounds fair enough." I commented. Then Audrey went on the blanket and Flora joined her. I sat down on the left and hear the boys lay down. I felt Molly curl up into a ball by my feet. " Night, Flora." I said. " Night, Audrey." Flora replied. " Night, Finn." Audrey called. " Night, Skipper." Finn said. "Night, Private." Skipper mumbled. " Night, Molly" Private asked. " Night, everyone." Molly said. " That works". Flora said. " Are we gonna do that ever night?" Finn asked. " Yup." Me, Flora and Audrey said at the same time. We laughed before the place went silent. 


	12. sleepless night

Poppy's POV Coney Island 5:30 pm I've been starring at the dark sky for what seems like twenty minutes and sleep wasn't coming. I could hear Flora softly snoring and Audrey's deep breaths. I think Private was snoring and Finn was too. I sighed softly before carefully getting up, trying not to wake the others. I did know where I wanted to go. I've never be to any big city with skyscrapers and restaurants at every turn. Curiosity was taking over me once again as I waddled. I just wanted to go into one building and check it out. My desire came true as I waddled past a building and another and another. I soon reached a couple of TV's broadcasting the same thing. I took a break there and watched the news. It said how it was gonna be rainy tomorrow morning and I muttered about how great that was. But then the missing list came up. A little five year old girl was missing, a ten year old boy was missing too. A teenage girl has been missing for a few weeks and everyone lost hope. Then the more recent ones came over. There was me. I watched carefully. " Twelve year old Poppy West has been missing since yesterday morning from her Massachusetts home. A witness, known as Savannah says that she was at a friends house for quick half an hour and when she returned, the child was gone. Another witness, Jenny, says she left the house for a quick minute and heard screaming from inside. But once she got inside, Poppy was gone. Further investigations are in store." The newswoman said and I sighed. Then I began watching again. " Also ten year old Flora Silver has gone missing. Exact date has been unknown since the parents were gone for three days. But several hours ago they returned home to find that their daughter and pet cat gone. The case is a bit fuzzy since their was no witnesses or evidence. The parents of Flora are going in for questioning on why they left a child home alone for days. Jail might be the case for these Vermonters." The newslady said. " Her parents really didn't care for her." I said quietly. " Audrey Brown and Finn Ruth have also gone missing. A witness has reported that 'there was a party going on when they heard banging on the door. Everyone hid and shut off the lights. Still, the kidnapper was able to locate the young couple and kidnap them . Everyone panic after seeing the two missing and called the cops', she said. Some eleven and twelve year olds got into trouble after finding beer and wine at the party too. New York's police is still investigating. Also, a comment from investigators is that Poppy, Audrey, and Finn has disappeared on the same day and that is also being checked into. Now onto some more news..." I stopped paying attention to the screen to think. " Twelve year old on drugs. That's a new one." I muttered. " The world turned crazy; that's for sure." A voice said. At first, I completely panicked and turned around. I sighed in relief. " Oh, it's you." I said to Skipper. " Why you up?" " No reason really. Just making sure you don't escape and get lost or anything like that. What about you?" He asked. " I wanted to check out the city. I've never been to one and I just wanted to see what it looks like. Plus I'm diagnosed with Insomnia." I replied honestly and checked over at the TV's. He nodded. " Manhattan is a huge city. You'll see everything once we get there." " So how will we get to the zoo again?" I asked. " We're making jet packs out of those bottles Private and Finn got for us." I chuckled. " Can't wait to see that." I snorted and got on my feet. We started heading back to the dock which was ways away. " Were the others asleep when you left?" I asked. " Yeah. Did you know that Audrey snored pretty loud?" He said. " Yeah, I've noticed." I muttered. " So does Private." " Everyone on the team does. Kowalski, Rico and Private all do." Skipper commented. " Do you?" I asked. " How am I supposed to know? I'm asleep during it." He rolled his eyes and then I hit my head with my flipper. " I act stupid when I'm confused." I said and he gave me a puzzled look. " Not knowing the time drives me crazy." " That will be fixed once we get to New York too." Skipper said as we made our way to the dock. " I think I'll stop here. I want to get some fish for breakfast." I whispered to Skipper. " Alright, but don't be out long." He warned me quietly before disappearing onto the dock which was just a blurry shadow. 


	13. leaving the island

Audrey's POV Coney island 6:00 am " Audrey, get up! Get up, girl." I listened to the voice and opened my eyes. It was ginger tabby fur that I saw first. Molly. " I'm getting up, I'm getting up." I muttered and sat up. Finn, Flora and Poppy were sitting in a semi-circle around Skipper and Private. It seemed like everyone had a pile of their own supplies. Then Molly pointed to a pile of stuff. There was a crush soda bottle, a roll of duck tape, two straps, a piece of wood, a fish and a few different kinds of herbs. I waddled over and Molly sat down next to me. " Their showing us how to make the jack packs. We're leaving in a half an hour or so." She said and watched the two commandos duck taped the wood onto the bottle. Then they taped the straps and putted the jet pack on. " Now you try." The British kid said and everyone started to make theirs. It was a matter of minutes before my jet pack along with the others jet packs were done and made. " Now you guys can eat the herbs and the fish." Flora said. " What kind of herbs are these?" I asked. " The white and yellow flower is Chamomile, the white flower is Daisy leaf and the green leafs are Ragweed. It just to keep you strength up for the day." Flora said. " What's this yellow flower?" Poppy asked Skipper. " It's Celandine for your eye. Does the same thing as you did yesterday with the herbs." He advised her. " Your getting good at the herb stuff." Poppy said and he shrugged. Private now had a smirk on his face as he ate his fish. I gobbled mine down and so did the others. " Are we ready to go?" I heard Skipper say. " Yeah." Poppy replied. " Yup!" Said Finn. " Oh yeah." I said back. " Ready as ever." Flora nodded. " Ready." Private said. " Then shake the bottles." Skipper said and we all started shaking our tail feathers. I saw Flora holding Molly 'cause she didn't have a soda bottle and they both were laughing. After a few moments, we jumped into the air and took off. " I'm flying! I'm flying"! I heard Poppy shout. It was a good feeling being up in the air. I could feel the air brush agents my feathers and the wind splash into my face. There was clouds near me and I went through one. I had damp feathers once I got out of it and more wind slapped agents my face. I could barley see but I noticed someone in front of me. A couple people in front of me actually. It was Private I think. And Finn. But it was heard to tell what they look like and what they said. I think someone or someones were behind me too. The blindness and deafness was driving me crazy! I saw silhouettes fly around in the sky and shadows creep past me. It took me a few moments to realize that one shadow swooped down. Then another shadow dove down and then another. I ducked myself down and started heading down ward towards the ground. I managed to balance myself before hitting the ground and now I could see clearly. It was Skipper who was ahead of me. Finn and Poppy were ahead of me too. Then Flora, carrying Molly, Swooped pasted me along with Private. Just then, Poppy started screaming. " Ahhh! I-I don't know what's happening! I'm-I'm falling!" She screamed. Then she plummeted down quickly, still screaming. Then Flora started panicking. " H-hey! I'm out of sodaaaaaa". She yelled on the way down and tumbled. I lost sight of her. Then Finn started going down too. Then Private, then Skipper, and then I felt myself swooping down to the ground. It went quick at least. Once moment I'm in the air, the next I'm on the ground. I landed right on my face and scratched my beak. " Ugh, who's there?" I said after I fell, still dizzy. " I'm here." I heard Finn say. " I am too." Poppy said. " Me too." Private called. I opened my eyes to blurriness and darkness. It took a few seconds to readjust to being on the ground. Darkness surrounded me like a black ribbon and there was only a little bit of light. I could see trash bags here and there and long shadows. I took a deep breath before looking around. Shadows brushed around in the blackness and it was silent. Soon Finn and Private slithered out of the shadows and into my view. Poppy appeared too; half of her face covered by gray. They looked around at the spray painted walls made of bricks and took it all in. " Where's Flora, Molly and Skippah?" Private asked. " I don't know." I said, peering around. I saw a little bit of light at the end of the alley and followed it. Someone was following behind me too. I was blinded once I reached the end. The sun beamed down and burned my foot as I stepped onto concrete. Car horns and people's voices echoed as they went by. This was definitively a huge city. " Wow!" I heard Poppy say behind me. She was totally awe-struck by the city. I cowered back into the alley and saw Finn and Private come over. " What's out there? And where are we?" Finn asked. I shrugged. Private pushed his way past us and looked out. " What do you see?" " A pizzah hut, a fabric store, a taco bell, snackatarium and another alley." Private said and paused. " What's so special about two fast food joints, a snack store and a alley?" I asked. " 'Cause I know where we are! We are just a mile or so from the zoo!" Private exclaimed. " How do you know?" Poppy asked. She always was a bit suspicious about everything. " Skipper and Marlene got stuck inside that snack store. It was right near the zoo." Private said, pointing at the store. " So you can lead us to the zoo?" Finn said. " Yeah. Then K'walski and Rico can help us find Skippah, Flora and Molly." Private explained. " But we gotta be careful not to get caught. I got caught by animal control once and do NOT want that to happen again. Just follow my lead and we'll get their quick." " Then why do you look so nervous?" Poppy asked. Another thing about her, she can read you like a book. " I'm just the private, I've never led anyone before. It's Skippers and K'walski's job." The teen explained. I nodded. " If you got this far, you won't mess up. And we won't let you down either." Finn said, encouragingly. I smiled and so did Poppy. " Thanks guys. Now lets get going." Private confirmed before jumping out of the alley. Poppy swooped after him with Finn not far off. I followed in the back. We brushed agents the wall as we slid down the side walk. Then we hid behind trashcans and slid up to a few street lights to hid behind. Nobody noticed us and so we dove into the next alley. We huffed and puffed, out of breath. " I.. I think were.. good." Finn panted. " Yeah ..I think so." Poppy said and snorted. " I didn't know...penguins could pant..I feel like a dog. " Me too." I said and I got a better look at my friends. There was more light inside this alley so I could see them better. Poppy had yet another scar near her eye from the fall and Finn's wounds reopened up. Private now had a newly place, bleeding cut on his chest and burn feathers. I think my beak was still bleeding along with my foot. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Being a penguin was hard. Just then, a noise made my eyes pop open. Growling. " Uh-no! Not again!" Private wailed and soon two huge dogs appeared and ran straight towards us. " Run"! Everyone shouted at once before zooming out of the alley. 


End file.
